UBC Prisman Lab | Meet the Team

Meet the Team

2025 Core Lab Members

We are currently recruiting graduate (Master's/PhD) students to join our lab! Please inquire at ubcvirtualsurgery@gmail.com with your CV attached.

Principal Investigator

Eitan Prisman

Dr. Eitan Prisman, a distinguished head and neck surgeon at Vancouver General Hospital and UBC, blends medical expertise with technological innovation. He has pioneered advanced robotic surgeries and virtual surgical planning since 2014, revolutionizing medical technology in clinical practice.

Clinic Fellow

Joel Howlett

Dr. Joel Howlett joined us in January 2025 as a Head and Neck Surgical Oncology Fellow at UBC.

Prisman Lab Head Manager

Kelly Rai

As Dr. Prisman's Medical Assistant and Prisman Lab head manager, Kelly ensures the smooth operation of Dr. Prisman's practice by managing patient appointments, handling booking logistics, and providing support for clinical and surgical scheduling needs. She is the heart of the research lab!

Research Assistant

Khanh Linh Tran

Linh started at Prisman Lab in 2019 as a development research assistant and continued since. As the heart of our students, Linh helps with onboarding new co-op, managing lab logistics, grant submissions, and many more.

MSc student

Jamie Kwon

Jamie is a master's student in the Experimental Medicine program at UBC. She completed her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry in 2023 and is currently studying early diagnosis and TORS outcomes for oropharyngeal cancer patients, as well as the utility of virtual tumour margin communication in optimizing radiation planning in head and neck cancer.

Research Coordinator

Amanda Ding

Amanda is a Co-op student in her third year, majoring in Neuroscience at UBC. She is the Clinical Research Assistant who joined in May 2024.

Research & Development Engineer

Amelie Marshall

Amelie is a third-year biomedical engineering student at UBC, specializing in biomechanics. She joined the team in May 2024 as an R&D Engineering co-op and is helping with virtual surgical planning of various head and neck surgeries.

Collaboration

We closely collaborate with...

Head, VGH Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery

J. Scott Durham

Dr. Durham is a highly experienced Clinical Professor at UBC and the Head of VGH Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery. He specializes in head and neck oncology as well as oromandibular and facial reconstructive surgery. Our team works closely Dr. Durham's to provide the best possible care.

ISTAR - UBC Electrical and Computer Engineering Professor

Sid Fels

Dr. Sid Fels has been a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UBC since 1998. Dr. Fels received his PhD and MSc in computer science at the University of Toronto in 1994 and 1990 respectively and his BASc in electrical engineering at the University of Waterloo in 1988.

ISTAR - UBC CS and Electrical and Computer Engineering Professor

John E. Lloyd

Dr. John E. Lloyd is a Research Engineer in CS and Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia. He is the Principal software developer for the ArtiSynth project.

ISTAR - UBC Mechanical Engineering Professor

Antony J Hodgson

Dr. Antony J Hodgson is a senior professor in biomedical engineering with an established research program in surgical technologies, experience in entrepreneurship and technology transfer, and a demonstrated history of curricular leadership and innovation.

ISTAR Group - UBC Electrical and Computer Engineering Ph.D. Candiadate

Hamidreza Aftabi

Hamidreza Aftabi is a PhD candidate and research assistant at the HCT Lab and the ISTAR group within the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia. His research primarily focuses on surgical simulations, biomechanics, machine learning, and robotics.

UBC Electrical and Computer Engineering Professor

Septimiu Salcudean

Dr. Septimiu (Tim) E. Salcudean is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UBC. He received his BEng and MEng from McGill University and his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, all in electrical engineering. His research focuses on ultrasound, teleoperation and image-guided surgical robotics.

UBC Electrical and Computer Engineering Ph.D. Candiadate

Wanwen Chen

Wanwen Chen is a Ph.D. candidate within the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia, supervised by Dr. Tim Salcudean. Her research interests are in ultrasound imaging and image guidance for robot-assisted surgery.

Associate Professor and Director of Research for the Division of Otolaryngology in the UBC Faculty of Medicine

Cathie Garnis

Dr. Cathie Garnis is currently appointed as Associate Professor and Director of Research for the Division of Otolaryngology in the UBC Faculty of Medicine and as a Scientist at the BC Cancer Research Centre. Her work is focused on deriving new knowledge regarding tumor biology and the creation of molecular tools that can be effectively applied to guide clinical management of cancer patients.